The documentary Khodorkovsky, directed by Cyril Tuschi, was shown at the Coolidge Corner Theater on Sunday, November 24th as part of an effort by senior Ariella Katz to promote awareness of the situation faced by Russia’s longest serving political prisoner, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who has been imprisoned for ten years. Once the richest man in Russia and [su_column size=”1/5″]Check the Brookline Tab’s interview with Ariella Katz here. [/su_column]16th richest in the world, it is widely believed he was convicted of false charges due to criticizing the Russian government for corruption. The film tells the story of Khodorkovsky’s rise from humble beginnings to a billionaire as the head of an oil company, and his later arrest and trials.

Katz first became interested in Khodorkovsky’s case after researching him for a history project her freshman year, and this led her to meet Khodorkovsky’s son Pavel and Tatiana Yankelevich, the daughter of Nobel Prize laureate Dr. Andrei Sakharov, both of whom spoke at the movie screening to give their perspectives.

WATCH: The trailer for Khodorkovsky

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Through sharing Khodorkovsky’s story, Katz wishes for people to be inspired, even if taking action is not always feasible.

“As much as I would want to get Khodorkovsky out of jail, it’s impossible. But it’s really important people know and care about him,” Katz said. “The government hopes if they put him in jail, everyone will forget about him and the problem will just go away. But people haven’t forgotten about him, and the point is you can’t put someone innocent in jail without people realizing it’s not him who deserve to go to jail, but the people in power.”

Mairin Quillen can be contacted at [email protected].